The scorching, arid northeastern state of Ceará, Brazil has long been known for growing cashews and coconuts. Now, it's defied expectations by cultivating one of the world's best public elementary school systems, despite high rates of poverty. How Sobral transformed its public school system and attained near-universal literacy offers lessons for…

The purpose of this study was twofold. The first purpose was to analyze exit data collection systems in Mississippi school districts (including a content analysis of the instruments used to collect exit data) to determine how many districts collected data from exiting teachers. The second purpose was to examine teacher characteristics (race,…

The purpose of this quantitative study was to examine the effect of the yearly principal attrition rate on the state accountability ratings of 144 traditional public high schools in Mississippi from 2015-2019 and the proficiency rate of high school students in Mississippi in mathematics, reading, science, and history as evidenced on the…

School accountability is necessary to measure school and student success. School accountability status, parent-teacher communication, and parent involvement since the online gradebook implementation have been factors in education. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to identify and evaluate patterns among teachers using the online…

When the 2017 National Assessment of Educational Progress was released earlier this year, most states learned that their average scores in grades 4 and 8 reading and mathematics remained relatively flat since 2015. More troubling though, students performing at the lowest 10th and 25th percentiles saw a decline in their scores. To confront this…

Introduced in the era of No Child Left Behind (NCLB) and continued with the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), states are required to assess students in English Language Arts. The Mississippi Department of Education, in accordance with NCLB and later ESSA, developed the statewide accountability and accreditation model to measure student progress…

This 22nd edition of "Quality Counts" offers a fresh take on the annual top-to-bottom ranking of the nation's school systems on a state-by-state basis published by "Education Week". The first of three "Quality Counts" reports being rolled out over the course of the year, "Grading the States" aims to…

This article describes how community colleges take on major changes as they undergo complete organizational redesign and streamlining of programming and services in the face of multiple challenges.

The purpose of this study was to determine the leadership practices needed to improve academic achievement and generate positive change in school organizations. The study was also conducted to provide insight to principal preparation programs and school districts about effective transformational leadership practices. A quantitative research method…

This study sought to determine the effectiveness on increasing student achievement of principals trained in a traditional principal preparation program and those trained in an alternate route principal preparation program within the same Mississippi university. Sixty-six Mississippi principals and assistant principals participated in the study. Of…

Federal and state educational agencies provide guidelines for public schools across the United States to follow (Linn, 2008; Levy, 2008). During a time of high-stakes testing fueled by school accountability standards, educators strive to meet requirements for academic growth in order to maintain a successful accountability level and avoid being…

"Straight A's: Public Education Policy and Progress" is a biweekly newsletter that focuses on education news and events both in Washington, DC and around the country. The following articles are included in this issue: (1) Obama Releases Fiscal Year 2013 Federal Budget: Budget Proposes 3.8 Percent Increase in Discretionary Funding for…

All of the 15 states in this study have recently been involved in school accountability system reform. Since 2011, the states have taken advantage of a federal program to give them flexibility around certain accountability requirements of the "No Child Left Behind Act" of 2001 (NCLB), the most recent reauthorization of the Elementary and…

Implementation of college- and career-readiness standards is some of the most important work currently underway in states to improve student achievement and public education overall. SREB examined the efforts of 14 states--including 11 SREB states--to support implementation of new college- and career-readiness standards. The goal of the research…

With the recent increase in accountability due to No Child Left Behind, graduation rates and drop-out rates are important indicators of how well a school district is performing. High-stakes testing scores are at the forefront of a school's success and recognition as a school that is preparing and graduating students to meet society's challenging…